The present invention relates to a component with a component section and a flange that is arranged on it for connection of the component to another element. The invention further relates to a flange connection of at least one component of this kind with another component as well as to a turbomachine (in particular a compressor or a turbine) with a (e.g., longitudinally divided) housing, which is assembled from two or more components by a flange connection.
A flange serves for tight connection of components (e.g., pipes, machine parts, and/or housing elements). The connection of flanges by elements such as bolts, screws, and/or nuts is hereby usually reversible without any destruction. Besides the positioning of the components with respect to one another, the function of a flange is often also the transmission of operating forces.
Among other things, individual housings of turbomachines are usually positioned with respect to one another by flange connections. In this case, the respective engine axis is normally perpendicular to the flange plane. The individual housings can be assembled, in turn, from different parts, which, in turn, can be connected by flanges. For example, various compressor housings, combustion chamber housings, and also turbine housings that are composed of half shells are known, with the engine axis then lying in the respective flange plane.
Known from the publication EP 1 162 347 A1 is a connection of housing parts of a steam turbine in which tension elements distributed on the periphery of the housing parts bridge the joint. The tension elements thereby exert a force on elements shaped in the form of radial projections, between which the tension elements are arranged. As a result of this, the parts of the housing are pressed together.
If an assembled housing is under high internal pressure, the respective components are held together by bolting together the connection elements, but it is not possible geometrically to position bolts directly in the flux of force of the surrounding housing shell. Thus, under a (pressure) load, a bending torque is created, which causes a deformation of the housing.
This can result—in particular, at the end faces—in a gaping of the joint. In order to avoid a joint, in particular at the end faces, EP 0 889 277 A1 discloses the use of housing parts that have a housing extension that is surrounded at the outer periphery by a coaxially attached, horizontal undivided ring.
During deformation, a housing fabricated with a constant radius will take on a shape that is oval in cross section. If what is involved, for example, is one or a plurality of housings of a turbomachine (especially of a compressor or a turbine), then the rotor clearance, that is, the gap between the housing and the rotor, is negatively impacted by this oval shape.
In order to avoid these drawbacks, the housings are often fabricated so as not to be round, but, on their part, oval. The deformation that occurs during operation will then compensate for the deviation, such that near roundness is attained. Such a fabrication is tedious and costly, however. In addition, a housing fabricated in this manner is matched to the respectively intended extent of the deformation and is therefore not optimized for flexible utilization.